William was previously mentioned in an article discussing Chinese legal pioneers (see China Business Law Journal volume 11, issue 1: Chinese legal pioneers). in Chisholm Street. Andrew can be contacted ona.godwin@unimelb.edu.au. He was, by all accounts, a man of [3] Citing Karin Derkley, William Ah Ket Legacy Recognised (2018) 92(3) Law Institute Journal 83 at 83, 84. Felvons 1. He visited China in 1912-13 as the delegate of the Victorian Chinese Chamber of Commerce to participate in the election of overseas Chinese to the new parliament of the Republic. joint Trusteeship with Sir Colin MacKenzie in the founding Despite these achievements, William Ah Ket's story is little-known. Ah Kets legal team successfully proved that the Chinese man was not an employee of the laundry but instead a boarder at the laundry who had simply been ironing his own shirt! After completing his training as a lawyer in 1899, William won the Supreme Court Judges Prize in 1902, and was admitted to practice in 1903. [14] Karin Derkley, above n 6. Fulfilling his fathers wishes, William studied law at the University of Melbourne. The Victorian Parliament eventually abandoned proposed changes to the laws known as the Factory Acts which would have made such restrictions more stringent. At that time, people born in Australia were British citizens by right, regardless of their parents origins. 'William Ah Ket (1876-1936), barrister, was born on 20 June 1876 at Wangaratta, Victoria, only son and fifth child of Ah Ket, storekeeper and grower and buyer of tobacco, and his wife Hing Ung, who were married in Melbourne in 1864. He went to the bar the following year and is widely understood to have become the first Australian lawyer of Chinese descent to practise as a barrister at the independent bar in the state of Victoria.3. family. to learn the cultural traditions of ancient China, and to 6Citing Karin Derkley, William Ah Ket Legacy Recognised (2018) 92(3) Law Institute Journal 83 at 83, 84. K Tn : Cuong. Vivienne Davis, William Ah Ket's great-niece, suspects she actually suffered from post-natal depression. Jamieson in 1903. Your information is being handled in accordance with the. Burns or Gilbert & Sullivan. in Wangaratta, William Ah Ket continued his regular attendance So how is it that such a pioneering lawyer of Chinese descent is not more widely known? Ah Kets colleagues remembered him with warmth and affection as an amiable and gregarious man, greatly respected for his ability and integrity. It is fitting and proper that this scholarship is named for him.[6], The recipient of the Scholarship, Tienyi Long, notes that [l]awyers, courts and legislators continue to grapple with the question of how equal justice can be achieved for diverse communities in a multifaceted and increasingly complex society diversity intelligence is an essential skill to facilitate equal access to justice for diverse communities it should be included as part of mandatory continuing professional development requirements under the Legal Profession Uniform Law.[7]. opinions expressed in these stories do not necessarily reflect those of La Trobe University We will never satisfy our ambitions. and their only son, John Williams, has been acclaimed as one He added, "A certain prejudice among clients against having a Chinese barrister to an extent limited his practice, though instructing solicitors thought very well of him".7, Despite, or perhaps because of, having himself been discriminated against, Mr Ah Ket devoted his life to fighting against unfair discrimination. in 1982 and is currently writing the biography of her father. ways of thinking, with particular reference to Confucius'. He said that "William Ah Ket did not ever sit on the Bench, though he would have been a very competent judge. Defying what was expected of Chinese-Australians at the turn of the twentieth century, he studied law and progressed to appear before the High Court of Australia. This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. the Consul-General for China, Dr. W.P. Ah Kets legal team successfully proved that he was not a prohibited immigrant. 15William Ah Ket, Eastern Thought, with special reference to Confucius (Second Morrison Lecture, 3 May 1933), available at https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/145813/2/Morrison%20Oration%2002.pdf. His father had arrived in Victoria in 1855 and after some years on the goldfields established one of the earliest tobacco-farms on the King River. The story of William Ah Ket, the first Chinese-Australian barrister. the social, business and sporting circles of Melbourne in William Ah Ket was Australia's first barrister of Asian heritage or ethnicity, born in Victoria in 1876. Maureen Bedford - Great-niece of William Ah Ket, Vivienne Davis- Great-niece of William Ah Ket, Reynah Tang- Lawyer and founding president of Asian Australian Lawyers Association, Toylaan Ah Ket- Daughter of William Ah Ket, Blossom Ah Ket- Great-granddaughter of William Ah Ket, The Chinese and the Factories Acts by William Ah Ket,1906, The Measure of the Years by Sir Robert Menzies, 1970. the subject of 'Reconciliation between Eastern and Western William Ah Ket became a leading figure in the Chinese Australian community during the early years of Federation. William Ah Ket - A Life of Diversity and Service Andrew Godwin* William Ah Ket (1876-1936), barrister, was born on 20 June 1876 at Wangaratta, Victoria, only son and fifth child of Ah Ket, storekeeper and grower and buyer of tobacco, and his wife Hing Ung, who were married in Melbourne in 1864. Asian Australians have played a vital role in the legal profession since the late 1800s, starting with the first barrister of Chinese origin to join the independent bar in Victoria, William Ah Ket. . of growing up in a traditional Chinese household where his While there he won a prize of 40 pounds from the Supreme Court in 1902. of their happy marriage with a small party at a Chinese banquet could well be achieved if the Morrison Lectureship Foundation Despite this, between 1905 and 1928, he appeared before the High Court on at least 12 occasions. for its foundation. a keen if not always successful punter. of the massive petitions raised by the Anti-Opium League of In a passage that is still recognised as current law in Australia, Justice OConnor stated as follows: It is improbable that the legislature would overthrow fundamental principles, infringe rights, or depart from the general system of law, without expressing its intention with irresistible clearness [10], Despite the bamboo ceiling that William must have encountered during his life and career, it appears that his mission was to remove barriers and, as his daughter Toylaan Ah Ket wrote, to implement his personal philosophy of building bridges between the East and West.'[11]. Chinese called by Dr. Sun Yat Sen to attend the first National Williams, founder of the Spanish Guitar Centre in London, He went to the bar the following year and is widely understood to have become the first Australian lawyer of Chinese descent to practise as a barrister at the independent bar in the state of Victoria.3. In a special series, RN examines Australia's relationship to China, and its rising prominence in global affairs. William Ah Ket made history when he signed the bar roll. Ah Ket was born in Wangaratta in 1876 and died in 1936. Ah Kets legal team successfully proved that the Chinese man was not an employee of the laundry but instead a boarder at the laundry and that he had simply been ironing his own shirt! William also represented Chinese-Australians challenging discriminatory legislation in the High Court. light opera or a Gladys Moncrief musical . She was sent to the Beechworth Lunatic Asylum and diagnosed with mania when William was five, and she lived there until she died in 1896. My father, William Ah Ket rose to prominence in the 1900s-1930s After the formalities conclude, enthusiastic discussion ensues among the guests about William and his legacy and includes a combination of questions and observations: How is it that William Ah Ket is not more widely known?; William was certainly ahead of his times; Isnt it remarkable that William managed to achieve so much despite the discriminatory policies of the time. He was also co-founder and If you have any further information about Williams life that you would like to share, I would warmly welcome your contributions. [3], Ah Ket fought against the requirements of the 1907 Factories (Employment of Chinese) Act, which discriminated against Chinese residents,[4] and successfully opposed legislative amendments in 1904, 1905, and 1907 which would have specifically discriminated against Chinese residents in the furniture industry. Cheong His father had arrived in Victoria in 1855 and after some years on the goldfields established one of the earliest tobacco-farms on the King River. A former partner of Linklaters Shanghai, Andrew Godwin teaches law at Melbourne Law School in Australia, where he is an associate director of its Asian Law Centre. 1John Lack, Ah Ket, William (1876 1936),Australian Dictionary of Biography, available athttp://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/ah-ket-william-4979. "William Ah Ket's contribution to diversity in the legal profession" The Hon Susan Kiefel AC Chief Justice of Australia I am pleased to speak this evening and honoured to present the William Ah Ket Scholarship for 2019. 15William Ah Ket, Eastern Thought, with special reference to Confucius (Second Morrison Lecture, 3 May 1933), available athttps://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/145813/2/Morrison%20Oration%2002.pdf. For the next twenty years he worked tirelessly for the 7Citing Sir Robert Menzies, The Measure of the Years (Cassell Australia, 1970) at 249. Despite his high profile and achievements, it would seem that others were advanced while he was not.6 He was neither appointed Silk nor a judge. He established a committee to oppose the proposed Immigration Restriction Act and he was also active in the Anti-Opium League of Victoria which attempted to bring about social reform among Chinese in Australia and abroad. of the Supreme Court and knights of the realm. invited scholars from interstate and overseas to deliver the The Inaugural G.E. After his return "But when it came to law, he knew very well what it was like to struggle and be poor and oppressed, so his sympathies were always on the side of the underdog.". Morrison Lecture was given in 1932 by Crossing Time: Australia's transgender historypart 1. William Shakespeare Romeo s Jlia 5. After living in China for many years, he returned to Australia as an adult but was treated as a prohibited immigrant because he failed a dictation test imposed by the immigration legislation at the time. Once completed, the Eagle Mountain Data Center will be a nearly 2.4 million square foot campus. I haven't yet established who exactly it was that organised James Minahan's legal representation; the Chinese consulate began its operations the following year. in the furniture-making trade. eyewitness of the Test matches between England and Australia. Captain Stanley Ket (LLB) served with the Intelligence Unit William was a member of the Chinese Empire Reform Association of 1904 and the Anti-Opium League of Victoria, organisations which supported modernisation and social reform among Chinese at home and abroad. Asian Studies Program Fast forward 90 years to 9 October 2019 when an audience of some 50 persons are gathered in the Great Hall of the High Court of Australia to attend the third award ceremony for the William Ah Ket Scholarship a scholarship established by the Asian Australian Lawyers Association in 2017 and supported by Maddocks. and president of the Nam Pon Soon Society, and a committee Australia, by putting into practice his personal philosophy He was in the front rank of pleaders and became renowned as a fine cross-examiner quietly spoken, courteous and shrewd and as an outstanding jury man. 14See Toylaan Ah Ket, William Ah Ket - Building Bridges between Occident and Orient in Australia, 1900-1936 (paper delivered at the Conference of the Chinese Studies Association in Australia held at Macquarie University on 5 July 1995), available at https://arrow.latrobe.edu.au/store/3/4/5/5/1/public/stories/wahket.htm. Each August since 2017, the William Ah Ket Scholarship committee has accepted applications for the most outstanding research paper on a topic dealing with equality, diversity, and the legal profession or the law from legal trainees, graduates, final year students and lawyers with less than five years of practice. William was particularly active in the fight against racial discrimination and appeared in many 'public interest' cases. He sold opium, among other supplies. He became the leading Chinese in the district and a respected member of the Wangaratta community. His father, Ma Ket [], had arrived in Victoria in 1855 to work as a community leader for the Chinese workers in the goldfields of Victoria. Life [ edit] With paternal ancestry from Taishan, southern China, Ah Ket was Australia's first barrister of Asian heritage or ethnicity. [1] Completing this course in 1899, William won the Supreme Court Judges Prize in 1902 and was admitted to practice in 1903. He served his articles under Richard Cross of the firm then known as Maddock & Jamieson (now Maddocks) in 1903. Contact Us, Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 7. William Ah Ket was born on month day 1876, at birth place, to Mah Ah Ket and Hing Ah Ket (born Ung). he signed the Bar Roll in 1904 and became the first Chinese Their father said "the boys were teasing her and boys tend to do that". William moved to Melbourne in 1893 to study law at Melbourne University, and was formally admitted to the Victorian Bar in 1904. '14 Williams focus on reconciliation is reflected in the Second Morrison Lecture that he delivered in 1933. Tune in as The History Listen explores his story. 8Citing Toylaan Ah Ket, William Ah KetBuilding Bridges between Occident and Orient in Australia, 1900-1936 (Chinese Studies Association of Australia, Macquarie University, July 1995) at 9. Last night, things came full circle when I attended the launch of the 2019 William Ah Ket Scholarship at the Chinese Museum in Melbourne. In memory of William Ah Ket (1876-1936), who was born in Wangaratta of Chinese descent and became a prominent Victorian barrister. Educated in both English andChinese cultures, he agitated against racialintolerance in Victoria and defended the rightsof Victoria`s Chinese community. Contact Andrew at a.godwin@unimelb.edu.au. He was born in Victoria in 1876, the only son among six daughters See the complete profile on LinkedIn and discover William's . including Carole Hinchcliff, helping me with my researchfor into William Ah Ket and also for promoting William's legacy and story generally. He advocated and promoted peaceful coexistence. William was born in the Victorian country town of Wangaratta in 1876, the son of Mah Ket, who arrived from Canton during the gold rush, and his wife Hing Ung. Williamhad 3 siblings: Toylaan Margaret ALLEN (born AH-KET)and 2 other siblings. Andrew and MLS would be delighted if any readers have information about William that they would like to share. After reading with (Sir) Stewart McArthur, He died on 6 August 1936 of arteriosclerosis and renal failure at Malvern, Victoria. '14 Williams focus on reconciliation is reflected in the Second Morrison Lecture that he delivered in 1933. William was particularly active in the fight against racial discrimination. William had 4 sisters: Alberta Young (born Ah Ket) and 3 other siblings. That in itself was an "impressive feat", says Reynah Tang, the founding president of the Asian-Australian Lawyers' Association. 10William Ah Ket Scholarship 2019, Program (9 October 2019). Liu in Sydney who both obtained generous financial support Toylaan Margaret Allen,his last surviving child, passed away in New South Wales on 16th July 2015. Each data center building is the size of a modern day aircraft carrier, nearly four football fields long. He became the leading Chinese in the district and a respected member of the Wangaratta community. Sir Robert Menzies wrote that he and Mr Ah Ket "were great friends". In addition to lobbying against discriminatory legislation, such as the Immigration Restriction Bill of 1901, William appeared in many cases that we would describe today as public interest cases. Ah Ket appeared in another High Court case calledPotter v Minahan.12 In that case, Ah Ket represented a man who was born in Australia of a Chinese father and a white Australian mother. [4] Citing Sir Robert Menzies, The Measure of the Years (Cassell Australia, 1970) at 249. View William Webb's profile on LinkedIn, the world's largest professional community. of Australia and the people of China - albeit at the academic community during the early years of Federation. He was an excellent after-dinner speaker, a prominent Freemason and a keen punter and golfer. His father had arrived in Victoria in 1855 and after some years on the goldfields established one of the earliest tobacco-farms on the King River. In the 1970 book The Measure of the Years by Australia's longest-serving prime minister, Robert Menzies, he referred to his colleague and friend Ah Ket as "a phenomenon at the Victorian Bar" but that "a certain prejudice among clients against having a Chinese barrister to an extent limited his practice . Parliament for the new Republic in 1912. In addition, William Ah Ket possessed a deep knowledge of the Western classics and modern languages and was wont to include quotes from Shakespeare, the Scottish poet Robert Burns or a Gilbert & Sullivan opera during his appearances in court!17. The first barrister of Chinese descent practising at the Victorian Bar was William Ah Ket. all born in Australia to his Chinese parents. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Over time the costs of maintaining this website have risen substantially (in fact they are probably larger than those of many companies who exist for profit). Sir Robert Menzies practised with William in Selbourne Chambers. Despite his high profile and achievements, it would seem that others were advanced while he was not.6 He was neither appointed Silk nor a judge. [9] (1908) 7 CLR 277. In 191314 and 1917, he acted as Consul-General for China in Melbourne.[1][5]. Neither of us will ever be made a judge, you because you are a woman. This panel discusses the role of Asian Australians in the legal profession in the past and today, including the challenges faced by Asian Australian lawyers. William Ah Ket was Australia's first barrister of Asian heritage or ethnicity, born in Victoria in 1876. For example, in addition to a busy life at the bar, William Ah Ket spent time as a diplomat, serving as acting consul-general for China in 1913-1914 and in 1917. Chinese people. For group subscribers, please click here to access.Interested in group subscription? . 9The Hon Susan Kiefel AC, Chief Justice of Australia, William Ah Kets contribution to diversity in the legal profession (Asian Australian Lawyers Association, William Ah Ket Scholarship Presentation, Great Hall, High Court of Australia, Canberra, 9 October 2019, 5:30pm). We will never satisfy our ambitions. - either Her Majesty's or the Princess Theatre - for a Melba for reciting pithy quotations from either Shakespeare, Robby Maddocks also announced on Monday that CEO David Newman has been named to the judging panel for the 2021 William Ah Ket Scholarship, an initiative launched by the Asian Australian Lawyers Association (AALA) in honour of the first Asian-Australian barrister in the country. After living in China for many years, he returned to Australia as an adult but was treated as a prohibited immigrant because he failed a dictation test imposed by the immigration legislation at the time. Growing up, Toylaan was sometimes teased for her Chinese heritage, but said she rarely spoke to her father on how she should deal with racism. 9The Hon Susan Kiefel AC, Chief Justice of Australia, William Ah Kets contribution to diversity in the legal profession (Asian Australian Lawyers Association, William Ah Ket Scholarship Presentation, Great Hall, High Court of Australia, Canberra, 9 October 2019, 5:30pm). of Germany's fascism and Japan's expanding military aggression amendments to the 1896 Factories & Shops Act to schools. Sir Robert Menzies wrote that he and Mr Ah Ket "were great friends". He was a sound lawyer and a good advocate". In its decision, the High Court found that if the immigration legislation had intended to remove the rights of citizenship, it should have expressed its intention clearly. Australia's first Asian lawyer, William Ah Ket, who battled racism and achieved landmark victories, and how his legacy lives on Chinese-Australian barrister and lawyer William Ah Ket was known. recital, a Gilbert & Sullivan production, a Franz Lehar that he could maintain his enthusiasm for cricket as a ball-to-ball 5 Law Students Society Dinner to Sir Harrison Moore, Farrago 5(5), April 23, 1929. of Commerce to represent Victoria at the Conference of Overseas William Ah Ket (, 20 June 1876 6 August 1936) was a noted Australian barrister. 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With paternal ancestry from Taishan, southern China, Ah Ket was Australia's first barrister of Asian heritage or ethnicity.He was born on 20 June 1876 at Wangaratta, Victoria, the only son and fifth child of Mah Ket and Hing Ung.He was an alumnus of the University of Melbourne.On 16 November 1912 he married Gertrude Victoria Bullock at the . 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A report in the Victorian Bar News of Winter 1984 records that he enjoyed an excellent general practice and was recognised as an able cross-examiner with a superb command of language. Dr Couchman says the changes William spoke out against were "very invasive". Source: MA,VMR Sir Robert Menzies practised with William in Selborne Chambers. Association in Australia held at Macquarie University on 5 July 1995. After the formalities conclude, enthusiastic discussion ensues amongst the guests about William and his legacy and includes a combination of questions and observations: How is it that William Ah Ket is not more widely known?; William was certainly ahead of his times; Isnt it remarkable that William managed to achieve so much despite the discriminatory policies of the time. Abandoned proposed changes to the 1896 Factories & Shops Act to schools not necessarily reflect those La! Of China - albeit at the academic community during the early Years of.... 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